Sept 3–Oct 1, Artists Repertory TheatreArtists Rep opens up its bold new season—the company’s 35th—with perhaps its most provocative work. Riffing off a wildly popular 19th-century antebellum melodrama, this Brandon Jacobs-Jenkins satire adds a black playwright to the historic cast in what the New York Times said might be “this decade’s most eloquent theatrical statement on race in America today.”

Sept 5, Powell's City of BooksThe local journalist and investigator follows up her acclaimed debut novel, The Enchanted, with The Child Finder, a gripping, atmospheric tale of a missing child with a vivid imagination and the woman—an expert who’s already found 30 other disappeared children, though not all of them alive—hired to locate her.

Sept 16, Arlene Schnitzer Concert HallSocial justice crusader, social media mogul, and explorer of strange new worlds (hats off, Mr. Sulu), Takei also emcees classical music concerts. With this symphony collaboration, he joins the ranks of high-profile narrators of Aaron Copland’s Lincoln Portrait—Gregory Peck, Carl Sandburg, and Barack Obama have taken on the role in the past—which includes reading excerpts from the Gettysburg Address.

Oct 6–7, The Old ChurchWith the floppy blond mop and feverish speech patterns of a televangelist, Reverend Billy—a.k.a. performance artist Bill Talen—leads his flock in original gospel tunes about climate change, corporate rapacity, and deportation. From cash-register exorcisms to a recent sermon at Trump Tower, it’s part protest, part comedy, and part earnest call for community.

Oct 7–14, Keller AuditoriumOregon Ballet Theatre opens its season with a world premiere, choreographed by Nicolo Fonte to Gershwin’s famous composition, performed live by Pink Martini’s Thomas Lauderdale and Hunter Noack, in a new arrangement by Lauderdale. He’s later joined by the full Pink Martini band with China Forbes for a reprise of the 2014 OBT hit Never Stop Falling (in Love).

Oct 11–15DeAnne Smith, a bow-tied (and occasionally ukulele’d) Canadian who buzzes about the stage with mischievous energy and swift, smart jokes, headlines the sixth annual installment of this all-lady comedy fest.

Oct 12, Arlene Schnitzer Concert HallFew authors anywhere get more hype than Saunders. But the man is truly a prose wizard, as reaffirmed in this year’s Lincoln in the Bardo, which the New York Times likened to “a weird folk art diorama of a cemetery come to life.” Up next? He’s penning a TV pilot starring Glenn Close as a zombie. We’re so in.

Oct 12–14, Newmark TheatreIn 1997, Portland’s dance game got a serious upgrade: a presenter called White Bird arrived on the scene, bringing in hotshot companies from around the globe. Titan troupe Paul Taylor opened that season, and returns for this 20th anniversary celebration.

A production photograph from the making of Coraline, part of the Portland Art Museum’s Animating Life: The Art, Science, and Wonder of LAIKAexhibit

Oct 14–May 20, Portland Art MuseumThe local pioneers of stop-motion animation—responsible for Coraline, ParaNorman, and Kubo and the Two Strings—get a star turn in this major exhibit. Expect puppets and props, plus behind-the-scenes photos, film clips, and a slew of screenings at the NW Film Center.

Oct 16–22, Pioneer Courthouse SquareCan you recreate the refugee experience in downtown Portland? That’s what this free, interactive exhibit, created by Doctors Without Borders, aims to do, simulating a perilous boat trip and arrival in a crowded camp. It could be a gamified gimmick, but it met moving response on its East Coast stops last fall.

Oct 25, Doug Fir LoungeThis foursome originally hail from Timbuktu, Mali, but formed their band 450 miles away in Bamako after they were displaced when radical Islamists captured Mali’s north. Now they’re bringing their exuberant funk-meets-R&B sound to Portland. Expect a log-lined, joyous basement party to light up the encroaching dark.

Nov 1–Jan 1, PNCA's Center for Contemporary Art and CultureIf you’ve ever seen a Flaming Lips show—and experienced the confetti, disco balls, glowing unicorns, and massive inflatable things—you’ve gotten a peek into the madcap mind of front man Wayne Coyne. Now you can fully crawl inside: The King’s Mouth is a floor-to-ceiling, head-shaped installation piece that invites viewers to lie back on plush red pillows for a spectacle of light, sound, and Day-Glo-tinged psychedelia.

Nov 11Some 100 authors and several thousand readers coalesce around the South Park Blocks again for Portland’s one-day literary festival, which this year promises local authors such as Omar El Akkad, Lidia Yuknavitch, and Carson Ellis alongside some of their acclaimed national counterparts. Book lovers, mark your Moleskine calendars now.

Nov 18–Dec 31, Portland Center StageIt’s fruitcake weather, which is why Truman Capote’s classic tale seems like an apt addition to the holiday calendar. It’s paired with a cycle of seasonal songs created by musical theater’s Merideth Kay Clark (a.k.a. Elphaba in the first touring production of Wicked) and Portland Center Stage production associate Brandon Woolley.

Nov 30, Arlene Schnitzer Concert HallJust when you think all hope is lost, Diamond Joe returns! The former vice president and (for some … OK, many) walking reminder of happier times stops off at the Schnitz to promote his new memoir, Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose.

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Nov 30–Dec 9, BodyVoxMotion capture isn’t just for Gollum anymore. The ever-inventive BodyVox—who previously incorporated lasers and green screens in their work—harness that technology, along with live video and infrared sensors, for a new dance show.